iUnderstand
by anquhluh
Summary: When Freddie gets hurt, Carly steps in to help out.


Carly Shay has always been a nurturer. When she was a little girl, she used to take care of her dolls like they were real children. If it was winter, they'd be under a blanket. If she had a cold, there were enough tissues for the both of them.

As she grew up, it was usually Sam she was taking care of. Don't eat this, don't lick that. Kidnapping is illegal and rude. We do not electrocute friends. They were little things, but she knew she could keep Sam out of trouble by doing them. Sam was like a best friend, but kind of like a little sister too. She could fend for herself, but once in a while she needed Carly to step in and help her out.

This time, it was Freddie who needed to be taken care of. This was really new to Carly. As long as she and Freddie had known each other, his mom always took care of him. Antibacterial underwear, tick baths, and all, Mrs. Benson was always on top of everything Freddie needed, and a bunch of stuff he didn't.

He'd gotten hurt about a week ago, and again, she felt it was totally her fault. This time, it wasn't something as drastic as getting hit by a taco truck. It was a total accident, she couldn't have known it would happen.

It was a beautiful, sunny day out. They'd gone to the park and Carly bought herself a kite on the way there, determined to fly it. Sam left for a minute to go chase down a hot dog vendor. Carly's kite was coasting along and Freddie was laying on a blanket watching and reading a tech magazine. Carly's kite got caught in a tree and Freddie insisted on climbing up and getting it. On his way back down, a branch snapped and he fell, hard.

A trip to the hospital, some stitches, and a few hours later, Carly was feeling incredibly guilty as Freddie was back in a cast. He had fractured something in his leg during the fall, the same leg he broke saving her life. The cast was pretty much precautionary, but a burden nonetheless.

To top it all off, it couldn't come at a worse time. Freddie's mom was working from 12 P.M to 12 A.M for the next two weeks, followed by another aggressive parenting conference in Fresno. She would normally take off of work, but they were short-staffed at the hospital and really needed her.

Out of guilt, Carly stepped in. She wouldn't let him walk anywhere that he absolutely didn't need to. She constantly worried about him getting hurt any worse than he already was. She caught herself spraying him with antibacterial spray from time to time, and asking him if he applied his ointment to the cuts he'd gotten on his arm.

She only became more protective as Mrs. Benson took her trip to Fresno. Now, she was on duty, as she saw it, 24 hours a day. Although Freddie told her she could calm down, that he was really okay, she was persistent in checking up on him and asking him questions. She made sure he ate, had healthy snacks. She even caught herself humming "When a big boy eats his vegetables…" after bringing him a tray of veggies for a snack.

It didn't go unnoticed either. Freddie thought Carly was doing this because she felt the whole thing was her fault. He thought it was ridiculous, but he let her do what she had to do to clear her conscience after realizing that his objections were being ignored. Spencer also told Carly that she didn't have to be so worried, she didn't do anything she had to apologize for. Sam didn't bother getting into the psychology behind it, she just cracked jokes as usual and kept it moving.

By the time Mrs. Benson got back, Carly saw things in a whole new light. Maybe she wasn't as insane and overprotective as she thought. She was just taking care of someone she loved wholeheartedly. She was just protecting what was hers. Some time after realizing this, she realized that she wasn't doing this because she felt guilty. She was doing it because she loved Freddie, really and truly. It was not in the same way as his mother did, but just as wholeheartedly.

When Mrs. Benson walked into her loft, Freddie was sleeping. Carly was in her kitchen, making him some soup. The two greeted each other and Carly gave her the rundown on all things Freddie from the last few days. Mrs. Benson smiled and nodded at the comprehensive report. When Carly was finished, Mrs. Benson thanked her over and over. "Go home and get some sleep, you're off duty now," she said, patting her hand.

Carly agreed, but Mrs. Benson asked for one more favor. She asked Carly to tell Freddie that she was running him a tick bath. Carly went in to his room to find him just waking up.

"Hey, your mom's back. She told me to tell you she's running you a tick bath."

"Oh joy," he snorted, rolling his eyes.

Carly giggled, saying "Well, I'm gonna get going. I'm really sorry about this again."

"Carly, stop. You've more than made up for it, it's just a tiny fracture. I'll have this thing off in another week or so."

"I hope so. I still don't think I've done enough though," she said, biting her lip and looking at the ground.

"Oh yeah? What else could you possibly do?"

"This," she said, and stepped forward, repeating history and bringing her lips to Freddie's, knowing this time, without a doubt, she meant everything she was feeling.

The kiss lasted for a few minutes, when suddenly, Freddie heard his name.

"Freddie, your tick bath is ready!"

Carly broke the kiss, smiling at him as he groaned.

"She's so crazy," he complained.

Carly smiled, giving him another quick kiss. "No she's not," she said. "Trust me, I understand."


End file.
